Summer is finally upon us. Not sure what to do? Believe me, there is so much out there! If you need a little help, look no further. Here are some ideas of things to do this summer in the Chicago suburbs. The hard part this year will be deciding how to fit in all the fun! So what are you waiting for – get out and start enjoying the summer!
I’ll be continually adding items so bookmark this page.
Summer Bucket List in Chicago Suburbs
- Pick your very own luscious strawberries from the vine. We had a fun time at Heider’s Berry Farm a few years back. For a laid back experience, Cody’s Farm is one not to miss. One of our favorite places, Stade’s, will also have strawberry picking this year. Check out our adventure a couple years back. (McHenry). This year we stopped by Sun Berry Orchard for a simple strawberry picking experience. Last year, we had fun strawberry picking at Tom’s Farm Market. (Huntley) Here’s a roundup of our favorite strawberry picking spots.
- Grow a caterpillar or frog or ladybug! Both kids and adults will be fascinated with “growing” their own butterfly.
- Bounce around at Bounce the Mall at Chicago Premium Outlets in Aurora. Only here for a few weekends! Save 15% off tickets with code PARENT15.
- Find a new favorite ice cream place. Try Julie Ann’s Custard (Crystal Lake) or Rusty’s Malt Shop (Richmond) or Milk House Ice Cream (Pingree Grove) or Cary Dairy (Cary).
- Celebrate National Donut Day on June 2nd and grab donuts from a new spot. Want to try something different? How about ube donuts at Gurnee Donuts? Psst. They are only made on the weekends. Make it even more fun with a self-guided donut crawl!
- Tie dye anything is super trendy right now. Why not commemorate this summer with your own tie dye t-shirt or socks or a hat? Here’s a fun take on a Fourth of July tie dye shirt. We made our own last summer through our library and had a blast!
- Blow bubbles or make your own bubbles. Here’s a quick recipe: 4 cups warm water, 1/2 cup dish soap, 1/2 cup sugar. Mix sugar and water and stir sugar until it dissolves. Add dish soap and stir. If you have the patience, let it sit for a few hours.
- Have a Dole Whip battle. Disney has released their official Dole Whip recipe and so has Holiday World (one of our fav amusement parks in the Midwest.) Try both and see which one the family likes better. Don’t want to make it? Head to Cary Dairy where they have Dole Whip waiting for you!
- Walk through a bog. What’s a bog? Learn all about it at the Volo Bog nature center then walk through yourself. While you there head to their unstructured nature play space. (Volo)
- Roar! Say hi to the dinosaurs at Dinosaur Gardens at Volo Auto Museum. While you’re here, you need to see all the cool cars! (Volo)
- Hike at a state park. A couple of our favorites in Illinois include Matthiessen State Park and Starved Rock.
- Visit a zoo AND an amusement park AND water park! Santa’s Village Azoosment is the best of ALL worlds! (East Dundee)
- Rainy day? No worries. Play retro arcade games at Underground Retrocade. (West Dundee)
- Tee up at these fun mini golf spots. Some include Lippold Family Golf Center (Crystal Lake) or River View Miniature Golf (St. Charles) or Tinley Junction (Tinley Park).
- Go on a playground crawl to find the best new playground. Some favorites include Deicke Park and South Ridge Park.
- Taste delicious gourmet popcorn at Mama Lee’s Gourmet Popcorn. (Elgin, West Dundee)
- Read, read, and read. Join your local library reading program or take part in the Scholastic Read-a-Palooza.
- Bike the Fox River Bike Trail and explore many of the family-friendly stops like Van’s Frozen Custard and Burger, Downtown Elgin, Gail Borden Public Library, playgrounds, and more!
- Farmers Markets are happening again this summer. Time to go pick fresh produce at a farmer’s market. One of our favorites is Woodstock Farmer’s Market on the historic square. They have storytime on Saturdays. We also have the farmer’s market at The Dole Mansion on our list.
- Find the “secret” waterfall in South Elgin.
- Waterparks are now open. Splash around at Raging Waves. (Yorkville)
- Go on a wild goose chase! Well, with the Goosechase app you can complete missions. The McHenry County Conservation District has their first inaugural “Find Your Wild” mission.
- Have you tried geocaching? We’ll definitely be outside more this summer and we’d like to try this. Sounds fun! Here are great tips from Travel Inspired Living. Coincide geocaching with MCCD’s (see above) Find Your Wild mission for extra fun!
- Sip on bubble tea! Some of our favorite spots include Umbrella Tea House (Schaumburg), Presotea (Crystal Lake), Tours de Jour (Schaumburg)
- Try a new sport. How about disc golf? Besides a disc, it’s totally free! Try it at Fel-Pro RRR (Cary) or Lippold Park (Crystal Lake) or Randall Oaks Park (West Dundee)
- Find your favorite sculpture at International Sculpture Park (Schaumburg), Mount St. Mary’s Sculpture Park (St. Charles), or Nathan Manilow Park.
- Spend half a day explore Randall Oaks Park where they have a zoo, a playground, and a “hidden playground.” (West Dundee) Make sure to pack a picnic!
- Become an Outdoor Explorer! Sign up through McHenry County Conservation District and receive a booklet of fun ideas for the outdoors. Complete 10 of the pages and receive a prize!
- See elk at Busse Woods. Review here. (Elk Grove Village)
- Batter up! Minor league baseball games are so much fun and some even offer playgrounds for the kids. We love going to the Chicago Dogs games.
- Go on a unique animal encounter. How about goat yoga or a chance to walk goats? Or meet and feed alpacas? Here are more animal encounters for you to try.
- Go fish! Catch and release fishing is available at Twin Lakes. Rent a boat for more fun! (Palatine)
- Try foods from a different culture. For Filipino food, try Pinoy Street Grill (Arlington Heights). Asian food at Roll n Donuts Cafe never disappoints. (Algonquin)
- Get lost in a sunflower maze. We had an absolutely amazing time at Von Bergen’s, Goebbert’s, and Richardson’s Adventure Farm.
- Pretend you’re Bill Murray from Groundhog Day and take a walking tour around downtown Woodstock.
- Have a special occasion to celebrate? Or geek out over science? Have the Purple Me Green science truck come to your house.
- Watch butterflies fly all around you at Crystal Lake Butterfly House at their Nature Center. (Crystal Lake)
- Plant a fairy garden. We adore this Fairy Garden Nature Cottage!
- Discover your favorite Asian foods at Mitsuwa. Grab some noodles for lunch. (Arlington Heights)
- Pedal a paddleboat on the lake at Twin Lakes Recreation Area (Palatine) or rent a cool dragon paddleboat at Main Beach (Crystal Lake)
- Buy candy at an old-time candy shop like Around the Corner Candy. (West Dundee)
- Witness how donuts are made at Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. Call first to see when they have a fresh batch cooking. (Elk Grove Village)
- Catch a flick at the drive-in. As the Chicagoland’s only option, The McHenry Outdoor Theater is one you can’t miss, has been opened since 1955. For a bargain, pack the car on Tuesdays for $12 admission per car. Read about our experience here. (McHenry)
- Visit two Joliet gems: take a hike at Pilcher Park and then visit the greenhouse. (Joliet)
- Take photos at the picturesque Walton Island Park. (Elgin)
- Go on an art walk to find sculptures and murals. (Elgin)
- Discover all that Rosemont has to offer. Review here. (Rosemont)
- Enjoy the beautiful gardens at Friendship Park Conservatory. Read a review by Queen of the Land of Twigs and Berries. (Des Plaines)
- Play at a nature play space. Try Wahoo Woods (East Dundee), Chipmunk Woods at Volo Bog (Ingleside), Prairie Patch at Lincoln Marsh (Wheaton), Crab Tree Nature Center (Barrington), Lake Katherine (Palos Heights), Heller Nature Center (Highland Park), Kuechmann Kove (Lake Zurich).
- Climb the tanks at Cantigny, then take a stroll around the gardens. Don’t believe me? Here are more reasons why you NEED to visit Cantigny. (Wheaton)
- Try a new unique treat – rolled ice cream! You can’t go wrong with any of the flavors at Moo’s (Aurora) or Coco Rolls (Crystal Lake).
- Have the next American Ninja Warrior? The ninja park in Schaumburg or Homer Glen or South Ridge Park in Hoffman will definitely satisfy.
- Looking for a quick trip over the border in Wisconsin? Lake Geneva never disappoints or a trip to Kenosha’s downtown and lakefront would be fun.
- The animals have missed you! Visit them at any of the major Chicagoland zoos like Brookfield Zoo or Lincoln Park Zoo. If you’re up for a mini road trip, the Milwaukee Zoo is great too.
- Get ice cream from the ice cream truck. Nothing says summer like ice cream from the summer truck!
- Explore Lake Katherine Nature Center and Botanic Gardens. Find waterfalls, an easy picturesque mile hike around the Lake, a nature play area, and gardens! You can even kayak the lake. (Palos Heights)
- Go on the ultimate classic road trip on Route 66 in Illinois.
- The Morton Arboretum is always worth a visit especially the awesome children’s garden. (Lisle)
- Step into the whimsical Children’s Garden in Elwood. Totally free!
- Take a hike and see horses? Yes, please. Hike at Danada then hit up the Sensory Garden in Lisle for a fun horse-themed trip.
- Check out a book and an exhibit at Gail Borden Library. We always look forward to their new museum quality exhibits. Last year it was about it Wizard of Oz. This year it’s all about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. (Elgin)
- Spend an affordable day out enjoying Lords Park with a brand new playground (free), the Elgin Public Museum ($2/pp), and a small zoo (free). (Elgin) Read all about the fun here.
- Have a play date at Peppa Pig World of Play. (Schaumburg)
- Love the circus? Circus Vazquez comes to Schaumburg in June.
- Go on a tour at Hephzibah Farms. Trust me you’ll fall in love with the animals. $10 per person spent. Read all about our experience here.
- Enjoy a movie on the cheap at a historic theater. Classic Cinemas in Woodstock is our go-to theater and offers $2 kids movies on Wednesday mornings. The theater was built in 1927 and has undergone quite a few renovations to make it what it is today. If you’re lucky enough to catch a flick in the main auditorium, it’s beautiful. Psst. Free refills on popcorn, drinks, and ICEEs. Afterwards, go on a Groundhog Day walking tour or have a picnic at the park.
- Strike! Kids can bowl for FREE at participating locations.
- Hit up a family-friendly brewery. Some of our favorites includes Holzlager Brewery (Woodstock), Crystal Lake Brewery (Crystal Lake), Hailstorm Brewery (Tinley Park), Sew Hop’d (Huntley).
- Follow the orange truck, or any of your favorite food trucks. I’ve had my eye on Stix and Noodles serving Filipino street food as they frequent some of my favorite breweries.
- Love nature play spaces? Make sure to add the newest Kuechmann Kove to your list! (Lake Zurich)
- Go camping! Jellystone Yogi Bear in Amboy was one of our favorite experiences a few years ago!
- Listen to a story in a different setting. Many libraries offer story time off-site. For instance, Elder + Oat (West Dundee) has story time during the summer. Lords Park (Elgin) hosts a couple story times as well. How fun!
- Embrace the calm at Soder World Wellness Center where they have an amazing garden with swans, a rock garden, and more.
- Love cars? Check out all the cool cars at a cruise night event. You’ll find me at Cruise Night in Cary on Wednesdays!
